On the Trail of John Wayne
From Winterset, Iowa, to Orange County, California.
By: Johnny D. Boggs 04/01/2007
I'm in Madison County, Iowa, not to view all those covered bridges, though they are charming, but to pay tribute to a great American. Unheralded. Practically unknown.
Yep, Mary Brown Morrison was quite a woman. Of course, most Americans—most people across the globe, for that matter—know only her son, born 100 years ago on May 26, 1907, in Winterset. Marion Robert Morrison eventually became Marion Michael Morrison (after his brother Robert’s birth), then Duke Morrison and finally John Wayne. From son of an unsuccessful druggist and “a tiny, vivacious red-headed bundle of energy,” to football player, to honor student at Southern Cal, to bit player and stuntman, to actor, to movie star, Academy Award winner and American icon.
But in my book, anyone who gives birth to a 13-pound baby deserves recognition.
Birth of a Legend
The Morrisons lived in a small, four-room house on Second Street for three years after baby Marion’s birth, then moved 12 miles north to Earlham for three more years and eventually on to California. If you’re following John Wayne, might as well start at the beginning.
Today, the Birthplace of John Wayne includes the house, partially restored to its 1907 appearance, plus a welcome center and gift shop. You’ll find plenty of memorabilia, including his eye patch from True Grit, and photographs and letters. Publicly, Wayne never returned to his hometown (although some say he sneaked home in the 1950s), but Hollywood has. Winterset served as location for Dick Van Dyke’s 1971 comedy Cold Turkey and Clint Eastwood’s 1995 hit The Bridges of Madison County.
In Old Oklahoma
From Iowa, it’s a long drive to Oklahoma City, where the Duke was, and is, a fixture at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum.
They loved John Wayne at the Western Heritage Awards, giving him Wranglers for The Alamo, The Comancheros, The Man Who Shot Liberty Valance and True Grit. The museum’s Western Performers Gallery gives him plenty of attention, from his shootin’ irons (his ubiquitous modified 1892 Winchester and single-action revolvers used in The Shootist), wardrobe pieces, even his kachina dolls and other treasures he donated to the museum.
Comments (1)
I MET JOHN WAYNE ONCE IN 1974. MY DAD RENTED A HOUSE IN NEWPORT BEACH CA ONE BLOCK FROM HIS HOUSE. FOR SEVERAL YEARS MY DADS OLD CABIN CRUISER WAS MOORED ABOUT 50 YARDS ALMOST DIRECTLY IN FRONT OF JOHNS HOUSE OVERLOOKING NEWPORTS MAIN WATER CHANNEL. I WAS ONLY ABOUT 12 BUT WE WOULD SEE HIM IN HIS YARD PLAYING WITH HIS DAUGHTER AND DOG. WHEN MY DAD FINALLY WAS ABLE TO RENT A HOUSE WHERE HE COULD HAVE A SLIP I WAS WALKING MY COLLIE ONE DAY AND..............SURE ENOUGH JOHN CAME OUT TO THE STREET TO GET INTO HIS GREEN STATION WAGON. HE SAW ME WITH MY DOG LADD AND HE CAME RIGHT UP TO ME AND SAID.............""MIGHTY FINE COLLIE YOU HAVE THERE SON! HE PUT HIS HAND OUT TO SHAKE MY HAND AND I FROZE LIKE ICE. I WAS SCARED TO DEATH!!! I DID NOT SHAKE HIS HAND AND SAID..........I GOTTO GO MR WAYNE. WHAT AN IDIOT I WAS BUT I WAS ONLY ABOUT 14 AT THE TIME. I REGRET THE FACT THAT THAT I DID NOT SHAKE HIS HAND BUT AT LEAST HE TRIED TO BE MY FRIEND. TRUE STORY..TRUE WEST!!!!!! JAMES CLARK KING
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